Former Clarkson Defenseman Alex Boak enters his ninth season as head coach of the SUNY Canton men's hockey program during the 2024-25 academic year after serving one year as an assistant for the Roos during the 2015-16 season.
The Roos earned eight wins during the 2023-24 season including winning two of their three contests against Route 11 Rival SUNY Potsdam. The team also picked up victories against SUNYAC schools Brockport and Fredonia as well as splitting with Lake Forest and sweeping Wilkes.
Canton finished 12-13-0 during the 2022-23 season including defeating five different SUNYAC opponents. The Roos picked up their first ever win against SUNY Geneseo earning a 2-1 road win (1/7/23) against the No. 6 nationally-ranked Knights.
The Roos went 10-11-2 during the 2021-22 season, finishing the year with four straight wins, as the team won the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Commissioner's Cup with a 5-2 win over Albertus Magnus College (16-8-1).
Boak led SUNY Canton to a 13-9-3 record during the 2019-20 season that saw the team receive votes in the USCHO Top 15 Poll for the first time in program history. The Roos spent five straight weeks receiving votes in the poll with the team's highest ranking coming on January 13th, 2020 when they received 30 votes and what amounted to a national ranking of 16th. SUNY Canton put together an eight game unbeaten streak (7-0-1) that included a sweep of Hamilton College, and road wins at Plattsburgh State, SUNY Potsdam, Buffalo State and Fredonia. Boak also organized a trip to take the team on an overseas trip to Europe during the school's winter break where they played three games and had numerous sight-seeing opportunities. The Roos spent time in Switzerland, France and Italy.
Boak led the Roos to their most successful season as they set a new D-III record for wins in a season finishing the 2018-19 campaign at 14-9-2. SUNY Canton went 7-6-1 in games v. SUNYAC opponents. The Roos defeated No. 3 nationally-ranked Adrian College on the road, went unbeaten at home (1-0-1) v. No. 14 nationally-ranked Fredonia (4-2 win, 1-1 tie) and beat Plattsburgh State (3-1) for the third straight time. The Roos also swept Buffalo State (4-3, 4-3), Morrisville State (5-1, 5-4), Bryn Athyn (3-2, 5-3) and split with SUNY Potsdam including a thrilling 4-3 comeback OT win at Maxcy Ice Arena. Canton finished the season winning four straight and seven of its final eight contests. The men's hockey team was named the SUNY Canton Athletic department's Male Team of the Year and also had the department's Co-Senior Male Student-Athlete of the Year (Joe Deveny), Overall Male Student-Athlete of the Year (Mike Cerasuolo) and Male Rookie of the Year (Sean David).
Boak, a Norwood native, guided the team to wins over storied programs like Plattsburgh State, Middlebury, SUNY Cortland, SUNY Potsdam, Morrisville State and Stevenson in his first season at the helm. His players were equally as successful off the ice as 10 finished with a cumulative GPA of 3.50 or higher and were heavily involved in the community.
The Roos won the same number of games in Boak's second season including an emphatic 4-3 road win at No. 9 nationally-ranked Plattsburgh State to open the season. SUNY Canton also defeated programs such as Brockport, Cortland and Johnson & Wales and posted a 5-3-2 record on home ice in the Roos House.
Boak, a four-year standout defenseman for the Golden Knights, appeared in 148 collegiate contests. He finished his career with 31 points on seven goals and 24 assists. A tenacious enforcer that frustrated opposing forwards, Boak led Clarkson in penalties during all four seasons. He was a standout not only on the ice but in the classroom as he was named to the ECAC All-Academic Team three times.
Following his four year career with the Golden Knights, Boak went on to play professionally in the American Hockey League (AHL) with the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins, the AHL affiliate of the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins. He played in 31 contests tallying seven points on a goal and six assists, while adding 80 penalty minutes.
“I think my coaching style will be somewhat like the way I played on the ice,” Boak said at the time of his promotion to head coach. “SUNY Canton will be a very hard working, relentless team that likes to take time and space away using our speed up front and size on the back end.”
Boak has also served as a counselor and coach at numerous camps, most recently at Can-Am last July. He was responsible for constructing and executing practice plans, conducting off-ice practices and evaluating players. He also served as a counselor at Clarkson University and SUNY Potsdam.
Boak graduated from Clarkson University in May 2014 with a Bachelor's degree in Financial Information and Analysis.
Boak lives in Norwood with his wife, Colleen, and sons, Charlie, Oliver and Bennett.
(Updated 10/15/24)
